Elastic-seam metal roof.



R. N. MITCHELL.

msnc SEAM METAL noon APPLICATION FILED APR. 5. l lfi. 1,235,714 Patented Aug. '7, 19-17.

2 SHEETS-SHEET I.

haw)":

l mnnmun R. N. MITCHELL.

msnc SEAM METAL aoor.

APPLICATION FILED APR. 5. 1915. 1,235,714, Patented Aug. 7, 1917.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

UNITED STATES PATENT OEFTQE. i

RANDOLPH MITCHELL, OF NEW KENSINGTON, PENNSYLVANIA.

ELASTIC-SEAIVI METAL ROOF.

Application filed. April 5, 1915.

v To all whom it may concern:

provided with a plurality of plates connected together by some form of lap joint or seam, but, so far as I am aware, no means have hitherto been provided for adequately covering the exposed ends of such seams, so

' as to prevent them from being damaged by the injurious eflects of water or other fluids, to which they are subjected by the beating in of the rain, or the siphoning, creeping or capillary action of water between the lapped or standing portions of the seam or joint connecting the plates.

' One ob'ect of my invention is to provide means for preventing such injurious action by the provision of suitable flaps or flanges formed on the plates and which are bent vision for expansion and-contraction at the v over to cover and protect the exposed ends of the seam and at the edges, and also serve as means for securing the plates in place.

Another object is to make suitable projoint for all usual changes of temperature. These and other objects and eatures of my invention, however, will be more thoroughly understood and appreciated by the following description and appended claims when considered in connection with the ac-.

companying drawings of selected embodiments thereof, wherein Figure 1 1s a plan view representlng the size of the sheet employed from which each roof plate or blank is formed;

Fig. 2 is a plan of the blank as formed or punched from the sheet to provide seam pro- I tecting flaps;

Fig. 3 is a perspective view of the blank as bent to form for connection with other plates; 7 j

Fig. 4: is a perspective, with parts broken away, of the standing seam, formed by lap- Specification of Letters Patent.

Serial No. 19,252.

Patented Aug. "1,1917.

ping and securing'two adjoining plates to I,

F 1g. 5 1s a perspective of a casting'or anchor hereinafter "dGSOI'lbQCl;

Fig. 6 is a plan of a modified form of] blank; I Fig. 7 formed by joining two such plates;

Figs. 8, 9, 10 are elevations in conventional form of modified forms of seam towhich reference will be made; and

Fig. 11 is a perspective, with parts broken away, of a carline which may be employed in securing the plates to car roofs.

In the form of roof length, approximately the width of the car, and 36 in width, though variations may be made for cars of diiferent width or length.

These plates may be made of any of the usual materialscommonly employed for prois a perspective view. of .the seam tection surfaces but are preferably of metal.

Of the diflerent metals employed, I have late especially adapted for car roofs,*1, Fig. 1, shows a sheetas manufactured for that purpose 112" in found that cast iron, pressed steel, "steel,

zinc, copper, lead, galvanized iron, tin, and alumlnum 'oralloys are all well adapted for the purpose, but my invention isnot limited thereto nor to metals, as many roofing compositions or fabrics can obviously be employed, though for car roofs I prefer one of the metals enumerated.

The roof sheet, 1, is. cut by hand or punched and sheared out by machinery to produce theblank 2, Fig. 2, presenting a plurality of projecting flaps or flanges, two of which, 3, are bent down along the dotted line a*?; at any desired angle, preferably at right angles,to the body of the blank;

When the blank is applied to the roof of the car, these flapsflt over the eaves at opposite sides of-the car and prevent water from entering. at that point and also provide means by which they maybe secured in place if desired.

7 Parts 4 and 5,01 the'blankare bent up form the vertical portions of the seam, and may obviously be of any desired heightby varyingthe length of the flaps 6 and 7 in cutting the blank from the sheet. Each of these vertical portions l, 5) isprovi ded at its upper end with extensions or deflectors 8 and 9, which are bent down or curled over in the same direction at any desired angle,

approximately, 4l5 60 degrees from the 'veralong the lines a-a and1bb, Fig. 2, "to.

tical. These deflectors serve to carry the rain water or melting snow away from the seam proper and that at the left, Fig. 3, or deflector 9 has an edge protecting flap 10 bent down vertically and designed to overlie and extend below the underlying deflector 8 of the adjoining blank when assembled as best shown in Fig. 1. This flap 10 is an important feature of the invention as it not only carries or deflects the water away from the lapped deflectors but covers the abutting edge of deflector 8, so that there is no possibility of water entering between the deflectors to be siphoned or raised by capillarity to the injury of the lapped portions of the joint or of the standing seam.

The flaps 6 and 7 are bent outwardly at right angles to the upstanding portions 4t and 5 respectively and the triangular flaps 9, of the deflecting portion 9 are bent inwardly over the tapered ends of the flaps .or flanges 7 of the upstanding portion 5.

As thus bent to shape, the blanks are ready for assembling, which is done by placing the end portions 5 and 9 at the end of one sheet, over the opposite end portions 1 and 8 respectively, of the adjoining sheet with the flaps 6, of the upstanding portion 1, inside of the flaps 7. As thus assembled to form a standing seam, the vertical portions 4 and 5 are separated by an air space designated 11, Fig. 41, equal to the width of the overlapping flaps 6 and 7, which prevent water entering or rising between the upstanding portions by capillarity and to also provide for expansion and contraction. To this end, flaps 6 and 7 are provided with bolt holes 12 and one of the flaps, preferably flap 6 with horizontal slots 13, through which suitable fasteners such as bolts 14, may be passed in securing the seam portion together. The ends of these bolts receive nuts 15, which are screwed up sufficiently to lock the parts together, but permit movement of the plates by means of the slots 13, whereby expansion and contraction may take place without injury to the seam and rendering the car roof somewhat flexible.

In many instances, however, I find it desirable to employ a casting or anchor 16, Fig. 5, the upright or vertical portion of which covers the seam protecting flaps 6 and 7 and is provided at its head with a deflector or hood 17. This hood is provided with de pending flanges or flaps and fits over the end of the standing seam, one such casting being employed at each end. The base of this casting 18 extends horizontally and is provided with apertures or holes to receive suitable fasteners as bolts by which it may be secured to the roof at the eaves. right portion is also provided with holes alined with the holes 12, and slots 13 of the flaps 7 and 6, respectively through which the bolts 14: are passed, the upper bolt also pass ing through that of the triangular flap 9" of the deflector 9. v

By connecting the roof blanks in this manner to the roof the expansion and contraction of each due to changes in tempera-- tureand which does not exceed one-fourth inch per seam is amply provided for, through the yielding connection secured by means of the slots 13, so that the metallic roof is sufliciently flexible to meet all normal requirements to which it is subjected. In applying my protecting roof plates to cars, while they may be secured in the manner just described, I prefer to employ a carline 29 in connection with the casting 16.

This carline is bolted to the frame at the eaves as usual to extend across the roof of the car and the standing seam is formed over it, the carline being received in the space -be tween the upstanding portions 5 and 6. The flaps 7 8 and 9 are arranged over the ends of the earline and the castings 16 applied externally over them, clamping the same and the deflectors S and 9 down upon the carline at opposite ends and bolted thereto by the bolts 1e into the bolt holes 30 at the ends of the carline, thus providing an elastic seam metallic roof of desired flexibility and in which the castings are the only means employed for securing the metallic roof to the car.

As will be obvious to those skilled in the art, the hooded portion, 17, of the casting 16, not only holds the ends of the seam and its deflecting surfaces in place but also by means of its depending flanges protects the edges thereof-against the weather and water, while the upright portion also covers and protects the seam covering flaps 7 and 8 and is an additional protection to the seam proper so that the seam and roof are practically water tight.

In the modified forms Figs. 6 and 7, the general features are the same as these described, butwith a seam protecting flap or flange 19, extending the width of the deflection 9, and as formed is bent down to cover the exposed ends of the overlapping deflectors 8 and 9, as best shown in Fig. 7,

the ends of said flap 19, being out at an angle closely fit, when bent to place, the adjoining portions 5 and 10. lln this form the flap 19 takes the place of flap 9. The adjoining edges of the flaps shown at 20, Fig. 7, may if desired, be suitably secured together as by soldering, although obviously the inclined portion 21 might be bent under the flaps 19, and bolted or riveted thereto, through holes 22, or both methods might be employed as shown. It is understood that this form involves but a slight modification from that already described and obviously is also employed in connection with the casting and carline incar roofing.

In the modifications illustrated by Figs.

8-10 the upstanding seam portions 4, 5 are placed close together; Fig. 8 sh0Wing the deflectors '8, 9, bent at" an angle as in the forms described, Fig. 9 with suchportions 23, 24', curled over forming a rounded top for the seam while inFig. 10, the deflecting portions are bent'twice to form oppositely inclined deflectors 25- and 26 for the up-' standingportion,-5, and corresponding deflectors 27 and-'28, for the part l and which gilcllerlie the parts 25 and 26 when assem- In each of these modifications, however, there is the vertically depending protecting flap 10, which is an important improvement in car roof construction, for with a single sheet of metal, as 10, instead of two sheets there is no possibility of water flowing up the under and inner side of said flap 10, to the covered edge of the inner deflector, hence no capillary action will take place or is there any other opportunity for water to reach either of the deflectors from the edges or the seam portions proper.

It will furthermore be understood that having the deflectors arranged at anangle,

ping those of adjacent plates forming a standing seam, means embodying flaps on each of said plates for covering and closing the opposlte ends of sald standlng seam to prevent the admission of water thereto and fastening means, said flaps also serving as a means for securing said plates together by means of said fastening means secured through said flaps to said support. 2. In a roof structure, the combination of a plurality of plates each having angularly bent portions at opposite edges to engage and interlock with those of adjacent plates forming a raised seam, with oppositely extending and overlapping flap means for closing the opposite ends of said seam to prevent the admission of water. a 3. In a roof structure, the combination of a plurality of plates having portions at opposite edges bent upwardly from the plane of said plates to form a seam andprovided with deflecting extensions inclined downwardly from adjacent the tops of said bent portions, one of said extensions overlying the other and having a downwardly extending flap projecting below the edge of the other, and means comprising flaps for coveringand closing the opposite ends of'said seam and for securing'said plates tosaid roof structure. I r

4. In aroofstructure, the combination of a plurality of metal roof. plates joined by standing seams comprising upstanding V61; tical portions at opposite sides "of adjacent plates with means integral therewith'and at opposite ends' of said seam for maintaining a spaced relation betweensaid upstanding portions and for covering or closing the ends of said seams.

5. In a roof structure, the combination of a plurality of metal roof plates having means at opposite edges for lapping them together and covering means at the opposite ends of said lapped portions for securing them together and to close and protect said ends from the ingress of Water, said means comprising a plurality of oppositely bent flaps.

6. In a car roof structure, the combination of a carline with a plurality of metal plates having lapped portions arranged over said carline, means at the opposite ends of said lapped portions and integral therewith, and

means connecting said last mentioned means together and to said carline.

7. In a car roof structure, the combination of a carline with a plurality of metal plates having lapped portions arranged over said carline at the ends thereof and means comprising an anchor secured to the end of said carline and to said lapped-portions for securing said plates to said carline.

8. In a car roof, a plurality of metalplates each provided with upstanding vertical portions at opposite edges with deflectors extending from the heads of said vertical portions and forming a standing seam,

a carline and. flap means to cover the ends oi said seam to maintain a spaced relation between said vertical portions, to receive said carline, and for securing said plates thereto. 7

9. In a car roof, a

plurality of metal plates each provided with upstanding vertical portions at opposite edges with deflectors extending from the heads of said vertical portions and forming a standingseam, a carline, flap means to cover the ends of said seam to maintain a spaced relation be- I tween said vertical portions, to receive said carline, and means for connecting said flap means and said carline;

' 10. In avcar roof structure, a plurality of metal plates connected together by lapped .portions forming a seam with an inclined deflector and an anchor having a hooded portion for covering an end ofsaid seam and the edge of said deflector and securing said plates in position.

11. A car roof structure comprising a carline, a plurality ofplates provided with integral means at the ends thereof lapping and forming a standing seam and an anchor having a hooded portion for binding said seam to the end of said carline and extensions from the lapped portions of said platesintermediate said anchor and carline having means to-provide for expansion and contraction of said plates due to changes of temperature or other causes.

12. In a roof structure, a roof plate-hav- 10 ing upstanding portions at the opposite ends each provided with a Water deflecting extension inclined downwardly from the upper end of said portion and parallel to other extension and flapsat the sides ofsaid portions each outwardly bent at right angles 15 to said portions, those on one portion being parallel but extending oppositely to those on the portion at the other end of said plate. In testimony whereof I afliX my signature.

RANDOLPH N. MITCHELL.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of latents, Washington, D. 0. 

